Brnabic: As of today, we are working to form all local government structures

Photo: Mileta Mircetic

President of the National Serbian Assembly Ana Brnabic, who is also the SNS commissioner for Belgrade, said that starting today, work begins to form all structures of local authorities and to make good on what was promised to the citizens and outlined during the campaign.

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Speaking about the local elections that were held on Sunday  in Serbia and the result achieved by the SNS, Brnabic expressed her gratitude to all citizens for showing responsibility and for saying more clearly than ever before that they want Serbia to continue working and developing.

"Thank you to the people, than you citizens, thank you to all who turned out and voted. I think that it will never happen again in history that one has 53 percent (of the vote) in Belgrade, 53 percent in Novi Sad, I think 48 percent and more in Nis. These are unprecedented things, it's a really big responsibility for us. From today we start working on the formation of all structures of local authorities and on further fulfilling everything that was promised and planned," Brnabic told TV Happy.

She added that it is not a triumph to win an elections, but to do what was promised to citizens, to approach things responsibly and "roll up your sleeves."

"Especially when we talk about local elections, i.e. municipal (assembly) presidents, mayors, let them hear what Aleksandar Vucic was saying during the campaign - 'Talk to people, pick up the phone, have your door open, talk to people, receive people, they are the ones who gave you your mandate, talk to people'. That is the basic message for me, there is no triumphalism. Starting today we start working on the formation of all the structures of local authorities and on fulfilling everything that was promised and planned," she said.

Brnabic noted that she condemns the incidents that happened in Novi Sad and Belgrade during the election day (Sunday), adding that it is an indicator of the opposition's enormous frustration.

"I think it is a reflection of two things. First, their enormous frustration, because everything was calm until about 11 am. I was in the city committee of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) in Belgrade all day, everything was calm until 11 am, while the turnout was higher than it was in December and then, they thought that everything was going as it should (for them). As they realized that the turnout was falling more dramatically compared to the December (parliamentary) elections, that tension actually grew and is an indication of a huge the frustration from their side," Brnabic said.

She added that it is devastating for her that the opposition has shown a lack of democratic capacity, and that will be a problem, because the dialogue needs to continue.

"We should now focus again on the implementation of all those ODIHR recommendations for the next parliamentary elections, which will be held in three and a half years, as they should," she said.

(Telegraf.rs/Tanjug)